The Benefit of Taking Baby Steps for Christian Millennials.

Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

Starting something new, whether a career, business, or even moving to a new place, can be scary. And it’s easy to be overwhelmed, especially when you factor in all the plans and logistics needed to navigate the new thing. And the sad part is that because of the feelings of being overwhelmed; we can find ourselves frozen in time, wondering how everything will play out. Because of that, we can fail to take the first step needed. Baby steps can be difficult to take when the big picture scares you.

Gideon and God
Explanation.
So how, then, can you position yourself when you are overwhelmed by what God is calling you to do?
Conclusion.

It can especially be hard for you if you are an overthinker and a mostly logical person. After all, why would you want to start something when you don’t have it all figured out? Maybe God is calling you to start a podcast or a YouTube Channel. It could even be a business, and you are wondering how you will do it since you don’t have all the equipment or whatever the case may be. Maybe God is calling you to start a business, but you are scared to do it because you lack the necessary experience. Is this you? Can you relate to this? Today I have a beautiful word to share with you. But before we start, let me take you to a story in the Bible.

Gideon and God

Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!” Gideon said to Him, “O my Lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”

Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?” So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” And the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”

Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.” And He said, “I will wait until you come back.” So Gideon went in and prepared a young goat, and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour.

The meat he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and he brought them out to Him under the terebinth tree and presented them. The Angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And he did so. Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread, and fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread.

And the Angel of the Lord departed out of his sight. Now Gideon perceived He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.” Then the Lord said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.”

So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it The Lord-Is-Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.”

So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night. Judges 6:11‭-‬27 NKJV

Explanation.

In this story, we see Gideon, a man from the least tribe of Israel and the least of the clans from Israel. And here was God calling him to deliver the Israelites, and Gideon was scared. First of all, he was scared because of the season he was in. They were experiencing oppression from the Midianites to the point they had resorted to hiding in caves. And to prove that Gideon was scared, let us look at verses 12 and 13, which say that Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites.

He was busy minding his business and was not in the mood for war because all he needed to do was to survive. And then God comes and interrupts him and his plan, asking him to step up and deliver the Israelites. This was overwhelming for Gideon. How was he to do that? He did not have the skills or experience to do what God was asking of him. He could not imagine himself doing it and he probably did not know where to start.

Gideon was overwhelmed. He did not see how he, the least of the tribes and the least in his father’s household, could deliver the Israelites from a people that were terrorizing them. Can you relate? Is God asking you to do something that is beyond you? Is the big picture overwhelming you to the where you are frozen in time?

It’s interesting to me that God used the least of the tribes, and Gideon, at that, was the least in his family. But the thing about God is that He likes working with the least of them all. Because it is in the least and our weakness that His power is experienced the most. And not only that, but often, when God calls you to do something, He already knows that you are the best candidate for the job, having factored in all the things that limit you. Imagine that. God still says you are the best candidate despite your limitations. God does not look at your resume when He calls you to step up. All He wants you to do is take the first step, and He will do the rest. God wants you to take baby steps.

So how, then, can you position yourself when you are overwhelmed by what God is calling you to do?

Baby steps.

When you are overwhelmed by the task God has assigned you, the best thing to do is to take baby steps. Don’t focus on the big picture rather, focus on the now. As you focus on the now, God will open up the next. You see, God already knows the end from the beginning. He knows what you need to get to next. And Him having called you to something, He will provide the need when you get to the point of need. For you to exercise the muscle of faith, God will give you just enough for now and wants you to rely on Him for the next. Therefore baby steps are important. They help you break the assignment into manageable tasks. And also helps you take the first move, preventing you from sinking into the pool of overwhelm and fear.

What has God called you to do? Is it to start a business? What can you do now to get closer to that business? Maybe all you need to do right now is to research the industry and glean from those who have been doing it for a while. Or maybe you need to take a course to equip yourself with the necessary skills. What you need will always be within your arm’s reach. God will never ask you to do something with things that are outside your reach.

Moses had a rod, the widow of Zarephath had the oil and flour, the prophet’s widow had the jar of oil, and the disciples had the 5 loaves and 2 fish. God knows you have what it takes to take the first move. He has already equipped you for it. So do it. Baby steps that’s the key. As you take the first step, God will highlight the next step you need to take.

Trust God as you take baby steps.

This process will require you to trust God. Trust that He has your best interest at heart. Trust that He is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do. You also need to trust that God, who began this work in and through you, will bring it to completion. You see, when you lack trust, you will find yourself stuck in the planning process and never executing it because you are overwhelmed and scared. And one thing I want to encourage you to do is to trust Him for the big things instead of trusting Him for the small things.

You can only build your trust in God by starting small. Believe Him to guide you in this current step you are on. Build equity with God by trusting Him in the small, as this will cause you not to be overwhelmed. Also, when enormous challenges come your way, you will trust Him with that, too. Gideon did exactly that. He asked God for a sign that it was Him he was talking to.

If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. Do not depart from here, I pray until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.”

God did not chastise Him when he asked for the sign. That was how he needed to build his trust in God. Your way could be different. Either way, I want you to know that God knows you, and He knows your heart. He will not chastise you for the asking. He wants to build trust and equity with you and show you who He is. Because He knows the only way, you will step into who He really is when you learn to fully trust Him, just like Gideon and Moses did.

Consistency is key as you take baby steps.

In this journey, consistency will help you get to the other side of the complete fulfillment of the promise. Even when you don’t want to do it, do what you can at the time. Of course, you will not always have the desire to do the said thing. But you will see the fruit of your obedience when you purpose to remain consistent. Can you imagine the level of discipline Moses must have had for him to continue confronting Pharaoh when all he got was a bunch of No? It must have been frustrating for him. But he did not relent and in the end, deliverance for the Israelites came. It was indeed God who got them out. But God works in partnership with man. Consistency is built by taking small baby steps.

That is how He chose and still moves here on earth. And so Moses’ obedience brought about God’s fulfillment of the promise. Elijah had to travail 7 times before the cloud could form, yet God had promised that the rain would come. God will do it, but He needs you to partner with Him to see the promise come forth. You can’t stop, hold on because you will receive the reward for your obedience if you faint not. Yes, the assignment is beyond you. But the beauty in that is that you will allow God’s Power to flow in and through you such that people will see God when the assignment is complete. Your purpose will point others to Jesus and you will have a testimony in the end.

Do it scared.

You know what, get to where you are willing to do the task, albeit scared. Moses was afraid to face Pharaoh. He did it anyway. Don’t allow fear to destroy you and prevent you from stepping into your purpose.

You are equipped for the task.

And to prove to you that this is true, Gideon fought the Midianites with only 300 men. Imagine that. Mind you; they were unskilled for battle. Yet through them, God saved the Israelites. Why do you doubt yourself? Why do you feel small? If you lack something, could it be that God knows you don’t need it, anyway? David fought Goliath using the things that were familiar to him. He did not need army skills or armor to fight him. Despite that, he defeated Goliath.

What you have is more than enough. God is asking you today, what is in your hand? Remember, Baby steps is the goal. That is all He needs to get the ball rolling. You are not running on empty, and you can only fight the enemy on your turf. Your assignment solves a problem. And that problem is an enemy of your purpose and your assignment. And the only way you will win and come out victorious is when you decide to use what you have to get you to fulfill your purpose. You are a solution to the earth. And it is time for you to step into your authority. What you have is enough, and as you go, God will provide what you need along the way. You don’t need to have it all figured out. He’s got you.

Conclusion.

So don’t be impatient for the Lord to act; keep moving forward steadily in his ways, and he will exalt you at the right time. And when he does, you will possess every promise, including your full inheritance. Psalms 37:34a TPT

The Lord wants you to take one step at a time. He holds your future, and He has seen the end, which is glorious. Take those baby steps. Just continue walking with Him amid the confusion and the frustration and trust THAT He has it all figured out. He is your Father, and He loves you so much. He wants to give you the best, but there is a process. This is because He does not want you to perish, so He is preparing you for what He has for you. Take those baby steps and trust God to cover the rest. Do not relent or give up. It is time for you to overcome the fear of the unknown.